A water-based ink set for ink-jet recording generally is required (1) to provide images that are bright and have superior color developing properties; (2) to have superior fastness such as light resistance, active gas (for example, NOx, oxidizing gas such as ozone, and SOx) resistance, and water resistance; (3) to cause no problem even when the water-based ink set contacts with various components used in an ink-jet recording apparatus; (4) to have superior storing stability, to hardly cause clogging of a nozzle of an ink-jet head even when the water-based ink set is used for a long period of time, and to maintain sufficient ejection stability, at high levels.
Further, in an ink set containing inks of three colors of yellow, magenta, and cyan, it is strongly required that hues of the inks of the respective colors are similar to the standard hues and are bright as a water-based ink set for ink-jet recording in the case when natural images and the like are expressed by mixed colors. Furthermore, recorded natural images and the like are required to have favorable long-term storing stability with which favorable color developing properties and a high optical density can be maintained. Therefore, it is important that the water-based ink set has not only sufficiently superior fastness such as light resistance and active gas resistance, but also hues in balance. That is, it is important that degrees of fading of the respective color inks are the same.
However, a conventional ink set had a problem in fastness such as light resistance, ozone resistance, and the like in any of the respective color inks. Therefore there was a problem that a hue balance after fading of color in a recorded object becomes worse.